


The Guinea Pig Plan

by allthebeautifulthings9828



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Big Brother Dean, Brother Feels, Castiel & Sam Winchester Friendship, Codependency, Gen, Implied Castiel/Dean Winchester, M/M, POV Sam Winchester, Secret love, guinea pig
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-26
Updated: 2014-01-26
Packaged: 2018-01-10 04:00:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 794
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1154628
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/allthebeautifulthings9828/pseuds/allthebeautifulthings9828
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>While waiting for Castiel to come back, Sam buys him a guinea pig. He and Dean are still struggling as brothers after refusing to let Sam die as he wanted, but he knows they have to get through it. They are brothers, after all. Dean finds the guinea pig and reacts jealously, which Sam uses as an opportunity to push his brother toward the angel. Castiel may be his friend but he knows Dean feels so much more. He wants Dean to understand happiness if they're going to repair their brotherly relationship too.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Guinea Pig Plan

**Author's Note:**

> I wasn't sure how to tag this one. Cas isn't in it but he's the focus between the brothers and Sam's trying to get Dean to admit how he feels.

Sam reached into the cage and traced the tip of his finger along the furry spine. The pet store clerk said it had to get used to being handled but he wasn’t too sure about whether those things bit people. A pink nose stuck into the air, sniffing out any advantage in that strange new home. It was kind of cute actually. Fluffy. Innocent and curious all at once.

The floor creaked behind him. Brothers who once shared everything now walked on eggshells around one another. Sam just couldn’t trust Dean anymore to let him make his own decisions and be his own man. But the fact was, they were brothers and they were the only family the other one had. And despite everything, he hoped they could work through the awful state of their relationship in time.

"The hell is that?" Dean asked in his usual growl.

"A guinea pig," replied Sam, aware of the obvious irritating him.

The older brother tilted over the cage, making the younger one reflexively back away. “You wanna tell me why you brought a caged rat into our home?”

"It’s your home. I just work here," retorted Sam in an overly calm tone. It was simply a fact of life. Nothing to get in a scrape over, but Dean always seemed personally offended when Sam didn’t see the bunker as home like he did. There were just a few things Dean had to get used to in the new facet of their relationship. Sam refused to pretend anymore. Still, he added, "It’s for Cas."

"Cas?" The hunter’s brows furrowed in a flash of possessiveness.

"Yep," he said as he poured pet store food into a bowl. "He’s gonna come back sometime. Thought I’d do something nice for the guy."

"A rat though?"

"No. A guinea pig."

An audible sigh passed through Dean, realizing Sam knew something about Castiel that he didn’t. It clearly irked him. Sam always knew his brother long ago laid claim to the angel, whatever that meant between them, and apparently it didn’t occur to him that Castiel could build other relationships too. Silence, pregnant with questions, filled the room as Sam placed toys in the wire cage.

Sam decided to put his brother out of his misery. “It’s kind of a joke between us. While you were gone, I said it was a good thing we had a guinea pig for this thing he wanted to do and he thought I meant we really had one here. I could tell he wanted to see it. You know, he likes cats too, so I think he just likes all kinds of animals. He can’t have a cat because you’re allergic but I think he’ll like this little guy a lot.” Pausing, he debated about what to say next. The words decided for him though. “He’s my friend too, you know, Dean.”

"I know that," Dean barked but then immediately recoiled as if he showed too much of his insides.

"Okay," replied Sam in a quieter tone with a slow nod. He turned it over in his mind. "You know … you … you don’t have to hold back because of me. I think … I think Cas means a lot to you. I’m not a kid, Dean. You don’t need to babysit me anymore—"

"—Sammy—"

"—I’m just saying. Seems like you’re hurting yourself because of me. Don’t push away stuff you want. Life’s too short. We know that better than anyone." He studied Dean for any sign of recognition. "If we’re gonna get past what’s going on between us, then we gotta start living for ourselves more. Cas is my friend and I’m giving him a gift because he’s done a lot for me." Again, he paused and wondered if Dean understood that he knew what went on in his head half the time. "The question is what are you going to do?”

He watched Dean glance at the guinea pig - a simple gesture between friends. A burst of self-aware panic reddened his face and he made an abrupt exit from the room. Changing anything about Dean was like taking a jackhammer to a concrete block - loud, painful, and completely disruptive, but eventually the block shatters into something more malleable. Sam knew he struck the right nerve.

If they were going to break away from their toxic relationship into something happier, then Dean first had to understand what happiness meant at all. Castiel made him happy. It didn’t take a genius to see that.

Sam smiled silently to himself and turned his attention back to the guinea pig. Someday soon, Castiel would come back and if Sam had anything to do with it, he’d come back to something - or someone - who could teach him about happiness too.


End file.
